Ryan Reynolds and Kenneth Branagh are unlikely allies in first look at "genre-bending, action packed buddy comedy" from Dungeons and Dragons directors

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Ryan Reynolds and Kenneth Branagh are unlikely allies in first look at "genre-bending, action packed buddy comedy" from Dungeons and Dragons directors News By Molly Edwards published 4 February 2026

Mayday has a first look and release date

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Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves directors John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein are back with a new movie – and it's a Cold War spy thriller with a twist, starring Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds and Kenneth Branagh.

Reynolds plays U.S. Navy pilot Lieutenant Troy "Assassin" Kelly, while Branagh is ex-KGB agent Nicolai Ustinov.

In the first look, which you can see above, Reynolds and Branagh lay side by side in the snow. Both of them seem pretty exhausted, as if they might've been fighting, or have fallen down to the ground. That's not a huge surprise, since the duo are apparently on opposite sides of the conflict... though there might be more going on than meets the eye.

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"Ryan Reynolds and Kenneth Branagh team up in Mayday, a genre-bending, action-packed buddy comedy that flips the spy thriller on its head," reads the official synopsis. "When hot shot U.S. Navy pilot Lieutenant Troy "Assassin" Kelly (Reynolds) is sent on a top-secret mission into Russian territory at the height of the Cold War, the operation implodes, leaving him stranded behind enemy lines.

"Discovered by Nikolai Ustinov (Branagh), a gruff ex-KGB agent with a penchant for American culture, Troy thinks he's toast – but could an unlikely alliance between the two lead to Troy's rescue, and a bond neither saw coming?"

So, by the sounds of things, this isn't going to be a straightforward Cold War thriller by any stretch of the imagination, which is something we probably should've expected from a duo like Daley and Goldstein. Sign us up for hijinks...

The cast also includes Marcin Dorocinski, Maria Bakalova, and David Morse. Daley and Goldstein write and produce as well as direct.

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Along with the first look, Apple also revealed the release date: Mayday will hit Apple TV on September 4, 2026.

While you wait, check out our guide to the best shows on Apple TV or the best movies on Apple TV to fill out your watchlist.

TOPICS Apple Molly EdwardsSocial Links NavigationDeputy Entertainment Editor

I'm the Deputy Entertainment Editor here at GamesRadar+, covering all things film and TV for the site's Total Film and SFX sections. I previously worked on the Disney magazines team at Immediate Media, and also wrote on the CBeebies, MEGA!, and Star Wars Galaxy titles after graduating with a BA in English.

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